Sony declares $1.3 billion loss

TOKYO (AP) — Sony Corp. sank to a $1.3 billion quarterly loss, hit by costs from selling its personal computer business, and is forecasting more red ink as it struggles to execute a long-promised turnaround.

The Tokyo-based maker of the PlayStation 4 game machine, Bravia TVs and Walkman digital player also reported today a loss of $1.3 billion for the fiscal year through March 2014, about three times its loss the previous year.

It forecast a $490 million loss for the year ending March 2015 as overall sales are expected to be flat without its Vaio PC business.

Earlier this month, Sony said it would report a bigger annual loss than forecast because of expenses that stemmed from selling Vaio, such as restructuring charges and dealing with excess inventory in components.

The PC-related losses are expected to continue this fiscal year, totaling $784 million, on top of the $900 million for the fiscal ended March 2014.

Sony also suffered a drop in the value of its overseas disc manufacturing business and its battery business.